The Inevitable
by RedAsARose
Summary: It had to happen eventually...the power rangers have finally fallen.
1. The Cape

**New story-yay! This one is different than all of the comedy I've done in the past...pleased be warned that it's darker and does involve character deaths (sob), because of this and the language and situations later in the story, it is rated M. I'm really proud of how it's come along and I hope you like it!**

 **Be patient with updates...it's not done yet but I wanted to share the first few chapters that I _do_ have complete.**

 **Read and review :-)**

 **DISCLAIMER: Power Rangers is not mine.**

 _The Inevitable:_

 **PROLOGUE**

Rose Ortiz leaned her head over the back of the bench she was sitting in. She kept her eyes closed and fully savored the rays of the sun as they bore down on her face. She was so lost in the moment of utter peacefulness that she didn't register her own name when she heard it being shouted by one of the many people strolling in the park that day.

"Rose!"

She snapped her head up and turned towards where the voice was coming from. A young woman with shoulder-length dark hair was hurrying towards her while tying a light blue sweatshirt around her waist.

"Hi Maddie!" Rose flipped her textbook closed and gracefully hopped off the bench to greet her friend. "It's about time you got here!" she said as they shared a hug.

"No kidding," Madison Rocca laughed, pushing a few stray strands of hair out of her face. "It's cold and raining in L.A., so our flight was a bit delayed."

"You call four hours a bit?"

Madison shrugged good-naturedly as Rose picked up her book and they fell into step with each other. "Californians don't do rain."

"It was seventy-nine degrees and rained for an hour. That's a normal Tuesday in Cambridge."

"You haven't lived in San Angeles long enough. Four hours is a legit delay for one hour of rain."

"I need to get you out to Massachusetts. So, where's my fellow pinkie?"

"Vida's at the hotel. She doesn't like flying. Or rather, her stomach doesn't."

"Ooh," Rose winced sympathetically.

"Yeah," Madison said slowly. "So…do you want a roommate for the weekend?"

"Ha. No."

"It was worth trying," Madison muttered, only partially upset about having to share a room with her sick twin. "I know you've been here a few days already so you know your way around better," she continued as they exited the park. "But Xander wants to meet us as some ice cream shop right by the hotel, if that's alright with you."

Rose nodded. "I know the place. We went there the day I got here. Wait…what's Xander doing here?"

"He and V took their vacations at the same time."

"Cute," Rose commented as Madison faked gagging. "So how's the rest of your team?"

"Same as always," Madison replied.

"Mm-hmm," Rose quickly responded before Madison could ask the same question. "And how is...that one guy, what's-his-face?"

"Nick," Madison said, becoming shy.

"Oh, we address him by his name now?"

"Vida's the only one who doesn't address him by his name," Madison countered with a slight shake of her head. "And he's coming back tomorrow, actually."

"What?" Rose said, halting in front of the ice cream store. "What the heck are you doing _here_ for the weekend?! You should be _there_ waiting for him!"

"I've been waiting for two years," Madison said as she waved at Xander, who was inside wondering why the girls had randomly stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. "Another day won't kill me."

"What about killing _him?"_ Rose demanded.

"Not my problem. _He_ was the one who left."

Rose ignored that. "Did you know he met up with Mack in Brazil?"

"Yes," Madison said patiently.

"And you know what they talked about? You!" she exclaimed before Madison could answer. "It's killing _him_ you know! He really misses you and he-!"

"Rose! I know!"

"You know?"

"Yes, I know," Madison said patiently again, pulling the shop door open and nudging Rose inside.

"How do you know?" Rose asked as Xander came over to them.

"Know what?" Xander asked, looking between the two girls.

"He told me."

"He told you? When?"

"Told you what?"

"Yesterday."

"Yesterday? When yesterday? Why'd you talk to him yesterday?"

"Talked to who yesterday?"

"He called me."

"He called you?"

" _Who_ called you _when_ about _what_?" Xander all but whined.

"Nick called me yesterday to say he's coming home tomorrow," Madison snapped at him.

"Oh," Xander replied calmly. "Well I knew that."

"Come on," Madison said, rolling her eyes and taking the first step toward the counter. "I'm starving."

* * *

"And that was the last time I tried to wake Ronny before noon on a Saturday."

Madison and Xander laughed at Rose's story as they entered their hotel. "And I thought Vida was dangerous in the morning," Madison said.

"Yeah, really," Xander said dramatically. Rose stifled a laugh while observing the mixed look of disgust and amusement on Madison's face. "Oh...wait," Xander said quickly when he realized what he implied. "I meant...it was...oh, never mind. I'm going to bed," he said as he sulked to the elevator.

"Whose bed?" Rose muttered to Madison, whose face this time crumpled into a look of annoyance.

"If it's hers, would you reconsider that offer for a roommate?"

"Absolutely. See, there's a difference between taking on a sick roommate and taking on a sexiled roommate. There's Billy!" she added as she looked over towards the entrance of the hotel restaurant, where Billy was standing at the entrance and animatedly talking to a younger man in blue.

"And Justin is with him," Madison added. "Have you ever met Justin?"

"Is he a blue?" Rose asked, eyeing his ensemble.

"Yep."

"My god, you people are everywhere!" Rose complained. "For once I'd like one of us to be here who isn't blue!"

By 'us' Rose meant, obviously, the Power Rangers. By 'here' she meant Cape Canaveral, Florida, at the tenth annual Mathematics or Physics ("MORPH") Scholarship Awards Ceremony. The event had been founded by none other than Trini Kwan as a charitable means to recognize a select group of high school seniors who had earned full-ride scholarships from the organization to go to their choice of a college as a math or physics major. She had started the program with Billy shortly after Kimberly and Jason's ordeal with Divatox. Since Trini and Jason had just gotten back from the World Peace Conference, she had moved in with Kimberly near her gymnastics studio in Florida, also located near the cape. Billy returned from Aquitar soon after and they joined forces to start the scholarship program.

They had run into a snag with their main donor only two years into the program, but then at the Rangers' yearly reunion, they met the newest team, the Time Force Rangers, and their leader Wes Collins, who just happened to have a few million dollars laying around that he was more than happy to offer to a power ranger sponsored scholarship (not that anybody knew that's who was sponsoring it).

Over the years, as new ranger teams were introduced, new members were added to the executive board of the gifted program, which now included Trini, Billy, Justin, Andros, Kendrix, Kai, Angela Fairweather, Cam, Hayley, Ethan, Kat Manx (though she only made public appearances in the future), Madison, and only a year earlier, Rose.

It also served as an unofficial Ranger reunion, but the rangers who attended were usually there with a member of the executive board. This year, Andros' wife Ashley had come, as had Angela's husband Joel, and Madison's sister Vida and Vida's boyfriend Xander. Kimberly was also planning on making an appearance since she lived so close by. She and Jason had come every year, starting with the first ceremony which was at about the time they were still recovering from their ordeal with Divatox. The two of them got together every year the weekend before the event to commemorate their being evil.

It was a tradition that the other rangers never understood, but just accepted with a smile and a nod.

* * *

Justin had just checked in and was going down to the hotel restaurant to grab dinner when he met up with Billy. They were deep in conversation outside the restaurant, Justin's dinner forgotten, when Billy suddenly looked over Justin's shoulder and waved at Madison and a girl in pink. They walked over to where the girls were standing near the elevators.

"We're not _all_ blue," Madison was saying. "Trini was yellow, and she _founded_ this scholarship."

"With a _blue_ ," Rose muttered.

"And Andros is red," Madison continued, ignoring her. "Cam is green. Angela and Hayley aren't even rangers. Kat Manx _was_ a ranger, but I don't think she had a specific color," she looked briefly to Billy, who shook his head 'no' to confirm. "And then there's-"

"Okay, okay, I get it," Rose said.

"Kendrix," Madison finished simply. "A pink."

"So there's a whole two of us."

"But Kimberly's coming," Billy added. "And isn't your sister here, Madison?"

"She's upstairs," Madison said before turning to Justin. "Justin, this is Rose. Rose, Justin. He had the flu last year and couldn't come. That's why you didn't meet."

"Pleasure," Rose said as they shook hands. "Even if you're not a pink."

"I wanted to be," Justin said solemnly. "But our pink ranger wasn't the one who was retiring when I came on. Plus my butt looked awful in that spandex skirt.

"It's true," said a new voice from behind Billy and Justin. They turned to see Jason walking toward them from the restaurant, with Trini following behind him. "Justin easily has the ugliest butt of us all. Mine, however?" he turned to the side to model his behind. " _Flaw_ less."

"It _is_ beautiful," Trini said dryly as she hugged Justin, Madison, and Rose in turn.

"Thank you," Jason said proudly as he had a turn greeting everyone. "So, can we eat now?"

Trini sighed. "I don't understand how Kat puts up with your lack of manners."

"Me neither," Jason said thoughtfully, momentarily forgetting the growling beast in his abdomen. "I asked her once and she said something about forming a support group with Aisha…"

"The help-my-man-is-a-pig club?" Trini supplied.

Jason shrugged.

"Probably," Trini muttered. "Rocky's even worse than you. Ready to eat, Billy?"

"Absolutely," Billy replied. "I met Justin on his way in, so he'll be joining us. And you two are welcome to join us," he added, looking to Madison and Rose.

They simultaneously shook their heads.

"I need a nap," Madison said. "Jetlag."

"I'm stuffed on ice cream," Rose said, contently rubbing her stomach.

"Did you check out that place down the street?" Jason asked eagerly.

"It. Was. A _ma_ zing." Rose replied, and Billy and Madison nodded in agreement.

"We should go there for dinner tomorrow," Jason suggested, and they all nodded in agreement.

"We'll go for dessert," Trini corrected, and Madison and Rose shared an amused look when Jason and Justin nodded obligingly. "Alright boys, let's go eat."

They waved to the two youngest girls as Jason practically pushed them inside, saying to Justin "You have to try the rib tips here, kid. They're morphonominal."

* * *

Madison felt like she had only been asleep for a few minutes before she felt herself being violently shaken awake.

"What... _what?_ What time is it? Did I miss the ceremony?"

"Chill out," Vida said, satisfied that her sister was awake. "It's just past eleven."

" _Eleven_? The ceremony started at ten! I thought I set my alarm for eight!"

"Maddie, it's eleven at night! The ceremony's tomorrow."

Madison paused as Vida beamed at her. "Why are you waking me if it's still today?!"

"Wanna go for a walk?"

Madison just stared at her. It was no secret that the twins were totally opposite, but sometimes it surprised even them just how little they had in common. Jetlag was one of their differences. Whereas Madison could barely keep her eyes open after a flight, Vida couldn't get hers to close.

"A walk?" Madison asked dryly. "At eleven at night, in a city we don't know?"

"Which is why I need you," Vida concluded logically. "You've been here before, so with that fancy memory of yours, I won't get lost."

" _We_ won't get lost," Madison corrected, pulling herself out of bed and groggily reaching down for her shoes, knowing that letting Vida loose in a strange city wasn't the best idea.

"Yes!" Vida said triumphantly. "Let's go!"

By the time they got off the elevator and were walking through the lobby, Madison was fully awake to realize her decision.

"Okay, let's go back now."

"We haven't even left the building," Vida said as if she was explaining to a small child.

"I'm tired!" Madison practically whined like a small child.

"And I'm hyper!" Vida retorted. "Just once around the block then we'll come back."

"Fine," Madison said as she pulled open the front door. "But just once."

About an hour later, almost ten blocks away, Madison found that she was actually enjoying their midnight stroll. As they were leaving the hotel they had met Rose, and the two pink rangers had been talking non-stop since then. It didn't bother Madison; she enjoyed walking without conversation, and the pinks seemed to have an endless amount of topics to talk about. It more amused Madison than anything, especially because Rose had about as much in common with Vida as Madison herself did; brown hair, brown eyes, and it was their job to save the world. She found her enjoyment fading, however, when Rose decided to bring Madison into the conversation, whether the former blue ranger liked it or not.

"So, Vida," Rose said innocently. "Have _you_ heard from what's-his-face recently?"

Vida's tone instantly changed. " _No._ Why?"

"Oh, so you don't know?"

"What? Know what?"

"Thanks, Rose," Madison muttered.

Rose smiled sweetly at her before turning back to Vida. "He's coming back tomorrow."

"Hmm," was all Vida said before continuing to walk.

Madison and Rose glanced at each other, both surprised at Vida's reaction, before rushing after her.

" _Hmm_?" Rose repeated skeptically. "That's it?"

"Well," Vida said thoughtfully. "Are you going to see him?" she asked her sister.

"No," Madison said slowly. "I'll still be here."

"Well then," Vida said again, this time matter-of-factly. "I won't worry about it until Sunday when we're headed back to Briarwood."

"How mature of you," Rose commented, glancing upwards as a flash of light caught her attention.

Madison was about to say something about how it's not up to Vida anyway, but she stopped when she noticed Rose had fallen behind to suspiciously gaze at something in the sky.

"Rose? What is it?"

"The shuttle."

The twins looked to where Rose was gesturing.

"Is that an airplane?" Vida asked, though she knew the answer before Madison and Rose silently shook their heads.

"I thought the launch wasn't until tomorrow," Madison said quietly.

"It's not," Rose said just as softly. "I know that for a fact…I was supposed to be there. It's not supposed to be until after the scholarship breakfast."

Around them, the few other people on the sidewalk had also stopped to look at the sky. The single car driving on the street came to a halt when the driver saw something in the sky between the buildings. The owner of a shop came out to see what everyone was staring at.

"It's flying really low," Vida observed. "And why is it circling?"

Neither Madison nor Rose answered, and Vida didn't notice the whirring of the two brilliant minds beside her. Madison's eyes were squinted as if she was trying to read the answer to their questions in the sky, and Rose was muttering to herself. Suddenly, they both finished their mental calculations and sharply turned their heads to look at each other.

"We need to go- _now_ ," Rose said suddenly as Madison grabbed Vida's arm to draw her away from the sight in the sky. Vida didn't argue.

The next moment, the shuttle stopped circling and seemed to simply drop straight down from the sky. Rose tugged on Vida's and Madison's sleeves to get them moving, but she could tell it would be too late. The people around them were screaming and frantically running away as the shuttle finally made contact with the top of one of the nearby buildings. Madison dared to look back, and in that split second she saw a wall of fire coming towards them right before the crashing shuttle caused the building to come tumbling down.

A few horror-filled seconds later, the wall of fire descended upon them. Instinctively, Madison reached out for Vida's hand.

"Sis!" one of them screamed, before the fire completely overtook them.

And the world around them burned.


	2. Listen carefully, okay?

**CHAPTER 1**

ONE YEAR LATER

 _Listen carefully, okay? We don't have a lot of time…_

 _It started 3 years ago. The World Internet Federation reported the appearance of an aggressive new computer worm, The Venjix Virus. A year later, it was estimated that Venjix had already infected 37% of the country's computer systems. By then, it was too late. Venjix took control of the country's communication, power, and defense systems. It built armies of advanced robotic soldiers that laid waste to everything in their path. There was no stopping them, and Venjix declared victory._

" _I am Venjix. Your world is now my world. And your time is now over!"_

 _But it's not over. Not yet._

 _If you can hear my voice, please go now to the Domed City of Corinth. It's the only place we can be safe. But you have to make it inside the city walls before the defense shield is activated._

 _Please, hurry._

* * *

A single tree stood silently and motionless in the center of Briarwood Park. A slight breeze picked up, blowing clumps of dead leaves about. A bright light flashed as a figure stepped out of the tree's trunk.

Nick Russell gave a slight shake of his head. "That was weird," he muttered. He was referring to the random route he had taken to get there. He was trying to get to the tree located across from the Rock Porium, but the path there hadn't worked. In fact, he had bounced around several times before finding this one.

He turned around to face the direction of the town and stopped. He knew it was going to be bad, but the sight of a war-torn Briarwood still shocked him. The whole area looked worse than when Imperious used Jenji to make it so that the rangers didn't exist. At least this time there was still color.

A moment later the tree, now the only one left standing in the park, flashed again. Nick took on a defensive position, but relaxed when he saw it was Clare who stepped out and looked around.

"Nick!" she exclaimed, rushing over and grabbing his arm. "There you are-let's go, cousin!" He hadn't even managed a greeting before she all but pulled him into the tree.

There was no abnormal flashing this time, and they travelled straight to Rootcore.

"Well," Clare said cheerfully as they stepped out, right in front of the entrance of the magical tree. "Here we are! Hi!" she suddenly threw her arms around him.

"Hi!" he managed to gasp. He was just as excited to see her, but hadn't anticipated a suffocating hug. "How are you, Clare?"

"I'm good! I mean, kind of good. As good as I could be. Physically, I'm good. Psychologically, a little messed up, but who isn't? How are you?!" she suddenly stepped back and held his shoulders at arms length. "Are you okay?! Was it bad getting here? Did anything give you any trouble?"

"I'm fine," he gave a slight laugh. He had expected nothing less than this concerned franticness from her. "There was a slight nuisance getting through, but I'm fine all the same."

"A slight nuisance?!" she panicked. "What kind of slight nuisance?"

He glanced over to the entrance of Rootcore. "Can I tell you later?" he asked, almost pleadingly.

"Yeah, yeah!" Clare exclaimed. "Of course you can! Silly me, you'll want to see everyone, your parents, Chip and Xander, Madison-"

"Maddie's here?" Nick interrupted. "When did that happen? I thought she was in the human realm?"

"Oh, there was an issue with the safe house in Angel Grove."

"What kind of issue?"

"It wasn't safe anymore."

"That's a good reason," Nick muttered as they made their way inside. "Is everyone okay?"

Clare's face took on a solemn expression. "We lost a few."

"Damn."

"Yeah. But everyone else got out fine." Clare nodded as they entered Rootcore. "Those who didn't stay to help in the human realm are all staying here now, so I'm just warning you it might be a _wee_ bit crowded-"

"NICK!"

Nick suddenly found himself being swarmed by a group of people who were shaking his hand, patting him on the back, or hugging him, saying how glad they were to see him.

"Alright, make way, give him some room." Leanbow gently pushed through the mass of color to stand in front of Nick. "Hello, son."

"Dad," Nick said almost breathlessly, before rushing forward to embrace him.

"Aww!" chorused several of the female rangers.

"Come in, come in!" Leanbow said, realizing they were still crowded in the entrance. "Your mother has been worried; we should probably go find her before anything else. And you can't come with us," he addressed the small crowd behind them.

"Aww," a few of them commented, disappointed this time.

As they were walking across the room towards the staircase on the other side, Nick had the feeling that he was being watched.

 _You're being ridiculous, Russell._ He thought to himself. _There are a dozen people in this room looking at you._

But some instinct had him looking up toward the balcony above the staircase Leanbow was leading him towards, and he couldn't help but smile. Leaning over the balcony, her elbows resting on the railing as she smiled shyly down at him, was Madison.

Before he could do anything but smile back, he was distracted by someone rushing down the stairs.

"Nick!"

"Xander! How are yo-Oof!"

"Nick! It's so good to see you!" Xander exclaimed, practically tackling his former leader as he bear-hugged him. "How are you doing, mate? You okay?"

"I'm…fine!" Nick stuttered as Xander lifted him off the floor. "Can't breathe!"

"Oh, right," Xander said, releasing him. "Sorry. Just glad you're okay."

"I'm good," Nick whimpered. "I survived out there just to get asphyxiated by my friends when I get back. I am fantastic."

"You'll live," Xander said cheerfully, giving him a thump on the back. "Well, so long as you stay in this realm, anyway."

"Funny," Nick responded dryly as he rolled his shoulders in an effort to realign his spine. Out of the corner of his eye he saw movement at the balcony and was disappointed to see Madison walking away from the railing, and from the staircase they were about to ascend. He was brought back to the conversation by Leanbow, who clasped a hand on his shoulder.

"Let's get you to Udonna. Is she still…?" he asked Xander, who nodded. "Good. We'll see you later, Xander."

"Find me later," Xander said to Nick, before making his way to a small group of people dressed in green.

"Sure thing," Nick replied absently, glancing up at the now vacant balcony before climbing the stairs with Leanbow.

"When Clare found out someone was travelling by tree, we knew it might have been you," Leanbow said after they had gotten to the top and were walking down the hallway. "But even then Udonna couldn't get away long enough to come downstairs to greet you."

"Couldn't get away from what?" Nick asked.

"She's waiting for a call from Jason Scott," Leanbow started to explain, but before he could comment further the door they were approaching flew open and Udonna rushed through, almost running into them.

"Nick," she breathed. "You're back."

"Hi mom," Nick managed to say evenly as her eyes started to tear up.

"Here we go," Leanbow muttered with amusement.

"Shut up, you," Udonna said as she reached out to hug Nick. "I am so glad you got home safe. How are your parents?"

"They're fine, last I saw them," he said as they pulled apart. "Has anything happened in Peru since I left it?"

Udonna shook her head. "We have been checking in, and there has been nothing suspicious. We are waiting for Jason and the rangers in the human realm to call us right now," Udonna said, just as an alarm sounded.

Udonna apologetically patted his arm before returning to the room. Glancing around her, Nick saw a table that a man in black was standing at, and Nick recognized him immediately as Tommy Oliver. He saw Madison was also in the room, sitting in front of a row of smaller screens. Next to her was a man in blue who was listening to something on headphones and fiddling with a dial.

"I've got a clear signal," the man in blue called to the room in general.

"Confirmed," a second man in blue called back from the other side of the room. There was a tense pause before he exclaimed, "It's them!"

"Well, put them on," Udonna said patiently as everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief. A man's face appeared on a big screen that was set up on the wall opposite of the door.

"Hello Mystic Realm!" Jason Lee Scott, original red ranger, exclaimed. "It has been far too long."

"Good to see you, bro," Tommy replied. "How's everything over there?"

"Dull, except for a few minutes ago when our tree alert went bonkers. We got a reading from Briarwood. It was ranger."

Tommy nodded. "That was Nick."

"Nick..." Jason mused. "The Light guy?"

"One and only."

As they were talking, Leanbow gently nudged Nick to the back of the room. "I have to be getting back to the forest," he explained quietly. "I'm sorry I can't stay longer to talk with you..."

"That's okay," Nick said, clearing his throat to cover his hesitation. "What are you doing out there?"

"Just meeting with representatives of the different tribes in this realm," Leanbow replied casually, not wanting to burden Nick with anything. "I should be back later tonight. Do me a favor," he added with a twinkle in his eye. "And tell your mother not to worry about me."

"Yeah, right, 'cause she'll totally believe that," Nick pointed out sarcastically. Leanbow smiled, patted Nick's shoulder one last time, and left the room. When he was gone, Nick turned to look around the room, and his attention was brought to a movement by the side wall. It was Madison.

She was saying something to the guys she was sitting next to, then got up and walked towards Nick as the guy took her seat. She inclined her head, indicating they should go outside the room. When they did and she closed the door behind them, they stood in the hallway for a few awkward moments.

"Hi," was all Madison could finally manage.

"Hi," was Nick's brilliant reply. "How are you?"

"Fine, fine. And you? Did you get here alright?"

"Yeah, I'm alright. The trees took me kind of out of the way to get here, but other than that..."

Madison nodded knowingly at his unasked question. "Some of the trees got destroyed in the invasion, or in battle. And some they cut down later when they figured out we were using the trees to travel."

"They?" Nick questioned.

"Yeah, they're like our hidiacs, or the original putties," she explained. "I think they're called...grinders! That's it! They're grinders."

Nick managed a small laugh. "Because they grind things?"

Madison also managed a smile. "Yeah...and they're made of gears. And gears grind, so..." she drifted off and the conversation died.

Nick awkwardly leaned against the wall. After a year apart, neither had planned their reunion going this way. Nick worked up the nerve to look at her, only to see her already staring at him.

"What?" he asked playfully so as to hide his self-consciousness.

"Hmm? Nothing!" she stuttered. "Nothing at all. I just...I just..."

Nick had grown up with an older sister; He recognized when tears were oncoming.

"Mads, what's wrong?"

She smiled at his use of her nickname-a nickname only _he_ used-and she could barely contain herself. "Nothing's _wrong_ , I just, well, I mean, _everything's_ wrong, the world is going to hell and people are dying and I just..."

Nick couldn't help himself any longer. He took a few steps forward, and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "Hey, it's okay," he whispered as she leaned into him.

"You're back," she murmured against his shoulder. "No one else has made it through the trees and I thought..." When her voice trembled he held on tighter.

"I'm fine," he muttered into her hair. But when she tightened her arms around his waist, she felt him wince. She instinctively pulled back, but he wouldn't let her go.

"You're hurt," she protested, and he loosened his hold on her only enough so that she could look up at him.

"I'll live," he repeated Xander's earlier observation, and couldn't resist running his knuckles down her cheek to reassure her. "It's not that bad," he explained lightly, but she still didn't look convinced. "I promise. And I'll go see Clare later, alright? She'll fix me."

"Well, what about now?" she persisted, stepping away. "I can walk with you."

"Ah..." he hesitated, then glanced at the door next to them. "If you don't mind, I'd rather wait...I want to know if they hear anything about Peru, first," he admitted.

She nodded in understanding. "Your adoptive parents are there."

"Yeah, with Andrew and Mack Hartford. I just need to know."

She nodded again. "I get it."

"What about your parents?" Nick asked curiously. "I heard that ranger families were being targeted, too..." he cut off as Madison's expression hardened. "Oh. Are they...?"

When she spoke it was very softly. "We were all together at the safe house-the old command center-in Angel Grove. But then we were compromised and had no other option but to use the trees to come here. Daggeron was in charge of getting us all here...mom and dad didn't make it," she was practically whispering now. "Neither did Xander's parents, or his sisters, but his brother made it through. But...Chip's mom died. And so did-" she abruptly cut off and couldn't meet his eye.

"So did _who_ , Maddie?"

"Daggeron. Daggeron didn't make it."

"God damnit," Nick muttered, and he lightly kicked the wall behind him. "What about my sister? Was she ever with you?"

"Not in Angel Grove," Madison explained. "She was visiting Toby at the Rock Porium the day of The Cape. LeeLee got her out to the Mystic Realm. She's been safe here ever since."

They were silent for a minute while Nick digested this. "That day," he said slowly. "You were at The Cape."

"Yes," she replied, even though he hadn't asked it as a question.

"How did you survive?"

She shook her head as if frustrated. "We still haven't figured that out. Some of the older rangers think we were all teleported out at the last second, but none of us were really paying attention to how we got from one place to the other so quickly. And we didn't all end up at the same place either; Rose, Xander, Billy, the Olivers, and the Rowlings' ended up here at Rootcore. Trini, Vida and I landed in the human realm, just outside of Angel Grove. And some of us got split up; Leo was with Kendrix at the time, but he came here and she's still in the human realm."

"How is Vida?" Nick asked cautiously, noticing that his pink ranger wasn't mentioned when Madison was listing off the fate of the other Mystic rangers' families. "Have you heard from her?"

"Yes, actually, she was going to meet with Matoombo a few days ago."

"Matoombo? Really?"

"Supposedly, but we haven't spoken to the rangers in the human realm since then, so we still haven't heard how it went. That's one of the things Udonna is going to ask in there," she gestured to the door."

"And the rangers in the human realm...how are they?"

"Most of them are here now," Madison explained, and she sounded relieved. "After the safe house was compromised we've been trying to get everyone here as best we can. There are only sixteen that we know of left in the human realm, and another nine that we haven't been able to locate. Plus your parents. And Carter and Dana's daughters, but we're presuming the four of them are together."

She shrugged as he tilted his head sideways at her. "I have a list," she explained.

"'Course you do," he shook his head knowingly, but looked startled as the ground beneath them suddenly shook. "Whoa...what was that?"

"That's just Fireheart," Madison said, not at all surprised. " Maybe after you see Clare you could go see him," she suggested innocently.

"Why?" he asked suspiciously.

"He misses you. It's kinda cute, if you look past the big, whiny, dragon part."

"Seriously?" Nick asked in amazement. "It's not like he was specifically attached to me to begin with, Clare is his best friend. All he needs are people, really."

"Yeah..." Madison said slowly. "About that..."

"What?"

"Not a whole lot of people go to see him. Chip is busy training the knights, and Xander's actually taken to baby-sitting the kids, believe it or not. It's usually just me because Clare's been busy with protection spells, and tracking spells, and healing spells, and whatever else we need a magical sorceress for."

"Why doesn't anyone else go see him?"

"Not too many of the others want to go visit a dragon."

"Why not?"

"Because he's a _dra_ gon."

"So?"

"So he's kind of intimidating," Madison said amusingly. "And this is the first time other rangers have been to the mystical realm. They're not used to all this magic stuff."

"Have you been taking care of him all by yourself?" Nick asked, taking a step closer to her.

"Yes," she said softly, slightly nervous at how close he was getting to her again. "There wasn't that much else for me to do, other than help with the occasional call to the human realm, or to organize where everybody is."

"Maddie?" he interrupted, gently placing a hand on her arm.

"What?" she managed to whisper.

"Thank you," he said softly.

"No problem."

"I mean it. You didn't have to do that. Really, you didn't," he added when she tried to interrupt. "He can take care of himself. He's just a big baby."

Before she could answer, there was a commotion behind the door and Nick stepped away from her.

"Ah, you are still here," Udonna said as she walked out, followed by Tommy, Billy, and Ethan. Udonna didn't waste any time. "Madison, your sister was able to make contact with Matoombo, but it was a trap."

"Is she okay?"

"She's fine," Tommy said, stepping around them. "So are Kai and Kendrix; they made it to The Domed City."

"But…" Madison pressed, seeing that something else was bothering him. Tommy looked at Billy.

"We'll meet in the main room in an hour, where we'll update everyone."

"Where's he off to in a hurry?" Nick asked after Tommy left.

"He has to find Angela," Billy said softly.

"Who's Angela?"

Billy didn't look at Nick as he answered, but instead his gaze lingered with Madison's for a long moment. "She's Zack's widow. Excuse me, I have to find Leo."

"Oh," Nick said after Billy also walked away. "Well."

"But, Kai and Kendrix made it to The Domed City," Udonna also looked at Madison, though she spoke to both of them. "Would you update our lists, please? But don't tell anyone. Tommy will in an hour." Now she turned to Nick. "Also, so far there is no news of anything going on in Peru, but the human realm rangers will keep a look out. They said they are not going to leave the realm until they know everyone is safe. Well," she clapped her hands together, though not entirely cheerfully. "I told Tommy I would help him speak with Angela. Can we have dinner after that? I would like to catch up with you."

"Actually, I'm really tired. I feel like just crashing," Nick lied, hoping Madison wouldn't say anything about his promise to go see Clare about the ache in his side. "Can we talk tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow, then. And do not think you can get out of having a meal and conversation with your mother," she said before he could object.

"Alright, alright. Tomorrow."

"Good. I will see you then."

"You _do_ look posi _tiv_ ely ex _haus_ ted," Madison commented dramatically after Udonna left.

"I didn't want her to worry," Nick explained defensively.

"Right," Madison said, though a smile was tugging at her lips. "Come on," she took a step down the hall and indicated he should follow her. "I'll walk you to Clare."

"I wasn't totally lying, you know," he stubbornly stated, though he did walk after her. "I _am_ tired."

"Yeah, because you got in a fight," Madison pointed out.

"How did you know about that?"

"You mean, how did I guess why you're in pain when I knew there was a possibility you had to fight through an army of robots just to touch a tree to get here?" She turned and looked at him pointedly.

"You know," he said after a moment. "You're too smart for your own good. And really, I'm fine. I can see Clare tomorrow."

But Madison had one more card to play. "Andrea's there."

Nick stopped short at the mention of his sister. "Andrea's where?"

"With Clare. In the hospital wing. But she's fine!" she hastily added. "It's just a broken arm, and _she_ wasn't even in a fight. It was an accident."

Something in the way Madison said it had Nick narrowing his gaze suspiciously as he looked over at her. "What happened to her?"

"She broke her arm," Madison repeated.

"Uh-huh," he folded his arms at her lack of a straight answer. "And, how exactly did she do that?

"Playing Frolf."

"Frolf?" he looked confused while he thought it over, but then he figured it out. "Frolf as in...Frisbee-golf? She broke her arm playing _Frisbee-golf_?"

Madison nodded solemnly. "You should see the other guy."

If Madison hadn't spent the last few months getting to know Andrea Russell, she would have been surprised by Nick's laughter. Instead, she smiled with him.

"Your sister is quite the interesting character."

"Yeah, Andy's a hoot," Nick snickered as they approached the staircase. He was relieved to see that everyone had cleared out of the entrance of Rootcore. "So what _did_ happen to the other guy?"

"Gash in the head," Madison said casually as they made their way to the corridor that led to their makeshift hospital. "Minor concussion. Andrea wanted to spin the memory loss angle, but she just wanted to pull Spencer's leg on that one."

"Spencer?" Nick questioned. "Overdrive's Spencer?"

"Yeah, Clare's doing healing potions for fevers and pains, but she doesn't actually know how to set bones or anything like that. Spencer was an army medic, did you know that?"

"No I did not," Nick replied. That hadn't come up in conversation in Peru when the Hartfords talked about their butler. Then Nick got an idea. "Do you think maybe you could go in first and see if just Spencer is in there? That way he can look at me and Clare won't have to worry about me, either," he explained when Madison looked over questioningly at him.

"You just don't want a fuss made over you," she pointed out.

"Just, will you do it?" he practically pleaded. "Please? I'll owe you."

"Fine," she pretended to huff as they came to a doorway. "Stay here."

As he waited outside she stepped into the room and did a quick sweep. "Madison!" he heard a familiar voice say, and his breathing unexpectedly caught in his throat.

 _Andrea_.

"Hey, Andrea," Madison replied. "Is Clare here?"

"Nope, but Spencer's in the back room. Is he good enough for you?"

"I heard that!" a muffled British voice called out.

"Yeah, he'll do," Madison replied, and Nick could her that she was smiling. "Hey, before I talk to him, though, I have a surprise for you."

"Ooh, chocolate?"

"Better than that," Madison muttered amusedly as she pulled open the door and gave Nick the all clear.

"Porn?"

"Ah, no..."

"Well the only thing I can think of that's better than chocolate or porn is..." she trailed off as her little brother stepped into the room. "Nicky."

"Hey, Andy," he greeted, and the siblings grinned stupidly at each other before Andrea leaped up from the chair she was sitting on.

"LITTLE BROTHER!" She yelled, and jumped into his arms, just as Operation Overdrive's butler walked into the room.

"What _are_ you doing?" Spencer accused as both Russells winced in pain. "Miss Andrea, back in that chair so I can change your cast. _Now_."

"Geesh, alright already," Andrea winked at Nick.

"Thank you ever so kindly," Spencer responded sarcastically. "Madison, what can I do for you? Is your head bothering you again?"

"No," Madison said a little too quickly. "I'm fine, it's Nick. He got hurt."

"Nick?" Spencer said idly as he slathered plaster onto Andrea's arm. "The Light guy?"

"Why does everyone keep calling me that?" Nick muttered.

"That's Nick-my-little-brother to you," Andrea said, proudly. "But what's wrong with you, Nicky?"

"Nothing bad," he said, instantly embarrassed to have them making a big deal out of it. "I'm just a little bruised from fighting some evil robots."

"I'll check you out in a moment, Nick-her-little-brother," Spencer said, still focused on Andrea's arm. "Are you quite sure you don't need anything Miss Madison?"

"Quite," Madison acknowledged, backing out of the room. "Actually, I'm going to get going...Tommy is getting everyone together for a meeting."

"Hey, Maddie," Nick quietly called after her when she was already in the hallway.

She barely had time to turn around and respond with "Yes?" before he had closed the distance between them, took her face in his hands, and kissed her.

"Thank you," he said when they finally took a breath. "Thanks for...I'm sorry," he pulled away when he saw the shocked expression on her face. "Sorry, I just had to...I missed you," he admitted honestly.

"That's okay. It's fine," she stammered. "That's perfectly...perfect..."

He cleared his throat, somewhat awkwardly. "Right." He was going to go back inside, but he had noticed something when he pushed her hair aside.

"What happened to your head?" he pointed to a wide cut just above her eyebrow.

"Huh?" Her hand automatically went to rub the slightly sore spot. "Oh. Um…Frolf."

"Frolf? Again?"

"Uh, yeah," Madison said guiltily. "Remember that 'other guy' I was telling you about? The one with the gash in the head and the minor concussion?"

Nick's mouth dropped open. "My sister cut open your head?" he asked incredulously.

"She didn't do it on purpose," Madison muttered defensively as the sound of voices carried down the corridor. They stood close together for a few more seconds, before Madison said, "Everyone's gathering so Tommy can tell them...I should go."

"Okay," Nick said, and softly brushed his lips against the bruise on her forehead. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah," she managed to whisper back. "See you tomorrow."

When Nick walked back into the room and closed the door behind him, he turned to see Andrea smirking at him.

"What?" he challenged.

"So," Andrea said conversationally. "You and Maddie, huh?"

Nick spared his big sister an exasperated look before rolling his eyes at her.

"Shut up."

* * *

A stunned silence met Tommy's sober announcement.

"Well fuck," Eric spoke up.

"Yeah," Tommy agreed with a sad smile. "Fuck. But we're making progress...Kai and Kendrix made it safely to the Domed City of Corn-"

"Corinth," Billy hissed from his spot next to Tommy.

"Corinth! That's what I said-I said Corinth!" Tommy tried to cover as most in the crowd managed feeble laughs. "Hardy-har-har," he rolled his eyes, secretly a little bit grateful that the group before him could still find reason to laugh. Even if it _was_ at his expense. "Anyway, they're in the Domed City of _Corinth_ to check out a few rumors."

"What kind of rumors?" Joel asked innocently. "Are all of the streets named after different kinds of crops, too?"

"Seriously, you guys are freaking hilarious," Tommy muttered, not _too_ annoyed with his comrades in arms, but still wanting to finish up this meeting. "Anyway," he started again in a tone that indicated they should listen, and the room quieted. "The rumors that led Kai and Kendrix to Corinth were rumors about a new team of rangers."

Murmurs broke out all over the room. "We're waiting for more information to confirm, but for now, we're trusting them to do their job while we do ours. There are still sixtee-" he broke off, then shook his head and corrected himself as he remembered the fate of Zachary Taylor. "Fifteen. There are still fifteen rangers in the human realm that we know of for sure, plus the two who are in Corinth. There are another eleven we still need to locate, soon to be twelve. We all have assignments here, if you don't have anything to do, ask someone in our makeshift control room to give you a job. Understood?"

There was a chorus of agreement, and the sound of people standing to leave.

"Wait!" someone called out. "Hang on!"

Everyone looked over to the back of the room, where Angela Fairweather stood on a chair so she could be seen by Tommy.

"Who's number twelve?" she asked once the noise had dimmed down.

Tommy blinked. "Twelve what?"

"You said there were eleven people who are still missing, but it will soon be twelve," Angela pointed out. "Who's the twelfth person?"

Udonna, who was standing opposite Billy, leaned over and muttered something to Tommy.

"Oh yeah," the greatest ranger ever said. "Sorry, I forgot-"

"Typical," TJ joked, but Tommy ignored him.

"Dana is pregnant."

The reaction was almost explosive. The room erupted with cheers of joy. Once again, Tommy was glad to see that despite their dire situation, happiness could still be found.

"Alright, guys," he called as the noise level returned to normal and everyone stood up to leave. "Let's get to work. I want all of our people here safe."


	3. Are you ready for this?

_**Don't forget to review! :-)**_

 **CHAPTER 2**

"Are you ready for this?"

"I'm ready. Are you ready?"

"Totally ready."

"Let's do this."

Adam looked at Rocky.

Rocky looked at Adam.

They both nodded once.

Trini rolled her eyes. "You two are so weird," she muttered before clearing her throat. "Alright Jase, fifteen seconds to meeting time."

"Initiate," Rocky said. As he and Adam each lifted ear plugs towards their ears, an alarm blared.

"Agh!" They both hastily dropped the ear plugs and clasped their hands over their ears.

Jason Scott, also holding the sides of his head, spun around from the huge screen he was facing. "Trini!" he yelled. "What is that?!"

"Like I know!" she snapped back at him while typing feverishly on a computer keyboard. "Alpha, do you know anything?"

"Ay-yi-yi!" Alpha 7 stammered. "It's the tree alarm!"

"Someone's travelling by the tree system the Mystic Force rangers use!" Trini relayed to Jason.

"It's coming from Briarwood!" Alpha squeaked.

"Briarwood? Isn't that where the Mystics are based out of?"

Before anyone could answer Jason, the room door burst open and Chip came rushing in. He immediately clasped his hands over his ears. "That's our tree alarm!" he shouted to the room in general.

"No shit, kid!" Jason yelled vaguely. "Trini! Turn that thing OFF!" his deep voice echoed around the room as the alarm turned off. "Thank you," he calmly stated after a moment.

" _I_ didn't do anything. Justin?"

"It wasn't me!" Justin called from across the room. "My fingers were in my ears, not my keyboard."

" _My_ keyboard," Trini muttered. "Which I now bestow onto you and your earwax. What about you Alpha?"

"Negative," the robot responded. "It seems the alarm has stopped because the tree activity has stopped."

"Makes sense," Jason said in a sarcastic tone. "What set it off?"

"Someone travelling by tree," Trini replied dryly.

"Do we know who?" he asked, ignoring her attitude that was in response to his.

She took a deep breath to calm herself. "No. I'm trying to find out."

"Um...Hey, Trini?" Justin asked tentatively.

"Oh great," Rocky muttered quietly so only Adam and Jason could hear him. "She's scared the children."

"Leave it alone," Jason warned, a smile tugging at his lips, before he spoke loud enough for Justin to hear him across the room. "What do you got, kid?"

Justin spoke only after Trini nodded at him. "Well, I don't know _who_ it was. But I know _what_ it was."

"And what was it, a stray dog?"

"Funny," Justin smirked at Adam. "It was a power ranger."

"Is everyone here accounted for?" Jason asked quickly, looking around at the few who were in the room with him.

"No one's left in days," Chip supplied. "Except for me and Zack...but we know where we are."

"That means it's a missing ranger!" Justin said excitedly.

"Trini, did we ever get that call?"

"No, I was supposed to make contact," Trini replied to Jason.

"Make it."

"Way ahead of you. It's going to take a moment or two."

Jason went back to the big computer screen. "Chip, do me a favor…get a headcount. Make sure there's still fifteen of us here. And take tweedle-dee and tweedle-dum with you."

"I resent that," Rocky said as he walked out. Adam quickly stuck his tongue out at Jason before following Chip and Rocky.

"Jason, they're answering," Trini said. "I'm putting it on the big screen."

"Hello Mystic Realm!" Jason boomed as an image from Rootcore came on screen. "It has been far too long!"

"Good to see you, bro," Tommy replied. "How's everything over there?"

"Dull. Except for a few minutes ago when our tree alert went bonkers. We got a reading from Briarwood. It was ranger."

"That was Nick," Tommy said, nodding.

"Nick…" Jason racked his brain. "The Light guy?"

Tommy chuckled. "One and only."

Jason noticed two men standing in the background who had started talking to each other. "So," he said, choosing to ignore them. "Any status updates from you?"

"Yeah," Tommy said, and Jason, Trini, and Justin looked up in anticipation. "Just five minutes ago The Light guy randomly showed up. Other than that…nope. You?"

"Well, other than The Light guy randomly showing up without warning us…nope," he mocked Tommy. "But seriously," he continued on, now ignoring more commotion on Tommy's end as several people left the room. "Now that we know where Nick is, we can take him off the M.I.A. list. And we have confirmed that Kai and Kendrix did make it to The Domed City."

"That's good news," Tommy commented with relief.

"Um, there's something else," Trini said. She stood and moved next to Jason so she could be seen by Tommy and the others in the Mystic Realm. "You can tell Madison we found her sister."

"That is wonderful news as well," Udonna said. "She will be so relieved to hear it." Trini and Jason glanced worriedly at each other. "Did you find out what happened to her, why she was so delayed in returning from her mission?"

"Yes," Trini said slowly. "She went to meet with her friend Matoombo as planned, but it was a set-up. Her back up, Chip and Zack, got there too late, but she got away. Trouble was, they had her surrounded."

"But Chip and Zack were able to get her out?" Udonna said softly, knowing exactly what Trini's hesitant tone meant: Something bad had happened.

"Chip brought her back yesterday. She's cut and bruised, but not too broken."

There was a moment of utter silence, and those in the Mystic Realm knew what it meant: Trini hadn't said anything about Zack coming back.

He didn't make it.

Trini continued numbly, "Can you guys handle telling Angela? I wish we had more details to tell her, or a body-" she broke off, slightly appalled that she was now referring to one of her best friends as a body.

"We will take care of it," Udonna spoke up.

"Thank you," Trini said quietly, and they could all tell she was close to tears.

"So Nick is back," Jason changed the subject, knowing that this was valuable time they had to check in with each other. There would be time to mourn later. "Did he bring any news from the real world?"

"We haven't had a chance to speak about it, and his main concern was his adoptive parents. I believe there is no news, or he would have told us straight away."

"We'll check in on the group in Peru, for him and the Overdrive rangers," Jason said as Adam and Rocky came back in.

"Chip counted fifteen," Adam told him. "Everyone's accounted for."

"Hey Doctor ranger, how are things going?" Rocky asked the screen.

"Hi Rocky, Adam. They're as good as can be. And Adam, we have something we need to show you."

"Are you ready? Here we go," Billy pushed a few buttons and a video of Kimberly, Aisha, and a little girl, about a year old, came on screen. Adam's face lit up.

"Is she going to throw up on my wife again?" Rocky asked dejectedly.

"That's my girl," Adam commented, his smile growing even wider at the memory.

"Hi Adam!" Cassie's voice came out of the speakers. She couldn't be seen on screen, meaning she was the one holding the camera. "We just wanted to show you what Ruth has been up to." The image moved to show a boy about the same age as Ruth lying on the floor, fast asleep. "Do you remember my son, Daniel? Well, you might not recognize him." The image zoomed in. "Because your daughter used his face as her painting easel while he slept. But don't worry, it is washable paint. And this boy can sleep through anything. Just like his father." The angle moved again to show TJ also lying on the floor, also sleeping. "Oh, but before you praise your bully of a daughter," she said with a teasing tone while zooming in on TJ's face. "Know that Aunt Kimmy and Cousin Aisha are really bad influences." Cassie, Kimberly, and Aisha giggled as the screen showed the butterflies drawn across TJ's forehead in marker, colored much too neatly to be made by a toddler. "Unfortunately, _that_ marker is _not_ washable…"

The image zoomed out again and back to the girls sitting on the floor.

"Ruth," Aisha said, lifting the little girl to help her stand. "Wave to daddy!"

Kimberly lifted one of her arms and waved it for her. "Hi daddy!" Ruth giggled and started waving both of her arms in excitement. "Yay Ruth!" Kimberly said enthusiastically.

"Hi daddy!" Aisha said for her again.

"Gaaaahh!" Ruth exclaimed. Rocky and Tommy glanced amusingly at each other as Adam weakly lifted a hand to wave back at the prerecorded video.

"Hi Ruthey," he whispered to the screen.

This time, Trini did allow the tears to fall.

"And just for the record, my dear cousin-in-law," Aisha commented as she placed Ruth on the floor again. "I happen to be a _wonderful_ influence…It was Kim. She drew the masterpiece and Ruth saw her doing it. _She's_ the horrible influence."

"Hey, you supplied the markers," Kim said, looking to Aisha and away from Ruth, who had rolled over onto her hands and knees.

"I didn't know what you were going to do with them," Aisha defended herself as Ruth crawled away. Cassie kept the camera trained on the little girl as she got to a chair. She grabbed the chair leg and started pulling herself up.

"That defense will never hold up in court," Kimberly's retort could be heard in the background of the video.

Ruth had pulled herself up so she was standing. Slowly, she turned to look back at the other girls. Since Kimberly and Aisha were busy chatting, she looked up and Cassie and smiled into the camera.

Rocky leaned in towards Jason and muttered, "Is she gonna do what I think she's gonna do?"

"Gaaaahh!" Ruth exclaimed again, just as excited as the last time. This caught Kimberly and Aisha's attention.

"Well," Aisha said as Cassie moved closer so the camera was eye level with Ruth. "It's been two weeks since she's figured out how to stand by herself, but no walking yet."

"Baa!" Ruth said, and she let go of the chair to clap her hands together.

"Oh yes, and she also thinks she's a sheep," Kimberly commented. "Is there a zord for that?"

"Oh no," Cassie said disappointedly. "The battery's dying…Come on Ruthey, before we go, take a step for daddy!" Cassie's hand appeared at the bottom of the screen as she held it out to the little girl.

Ruth's smile faded, and she looked to Kimberly and Aisha, who were also encouraging her. She looked back to the camera, and a wide grin suddenly broke out again. She held one hand out to Cassie and took four steps before suddenly stopping, looking down at her feet in surprise, and plopping to the floor on her butt.

The former ranger girls went nuts.

"Oh my gosh-she walked!"

"Yay Ruth!"

"Cassie, you got that, right?"

"We have to send this to Adam right away!"

"Good girl Ruthey!"

The actual images on the screen were jerky as all three women rushed to Ruth, who was looking around, still confused about this new thing she did. At one point, the camera was facing a confused looking TJ, facial butterflies and all, who looked as though he had suddenly been awoken by the cheers of excitement. The confusion continued for a few more seconds until the battery seemingly died and the screen went blank.

"That's my girl," Adam said softly to the silent room. Rocky threw an arm around his shoulders.

"She'll be chasing the boys in no time," he commented as Adam subtly rubbed his hand across his dampening eyes.

"Yeah, great," he said, smiling. "And the first one she'll go after is Daniel. And then TJ comes after me."

"I think you should be more worried about Cassie coming after you," Jason said as he joined them in front of the giant screen, just as the image from Rootcore came on again.

"Well, I'm glad to see your side is holding it together," Tommy commented dryly. They noticed that Udonna had stepped out of view of the camera. As one, the guys in the human realm all turned to look at Trini, who wasn't bothering to wipe away the tears streaming down her cheeks.

" _What_?" she snapped.

"Nothing!" The three of them said, quickly looking away.

"It's so cute when the original rangers do things in unison," Justin smirked at them.

Tommy shook his head. "Alright, so I guess you're _not_ holding it together…"

"Oh shut up Doctor ranger," Trini said, though she was smiling.

"Anyway, that was two days ago, Adam," Tommy continued. "Kim said to tell you that now she's taken up to nine steps without holding onto anything, and she can cruise if someone holds her hands and walks with her."

They spent the next few minutes catching up on the status of the known and unknown rangers. Then Adam left to tell anyone who would listen that his daughter had taken her first steps. Rocky went with to tell anyone who would listen that Ruth's walking now made it that much easier for her to harass Cassie and TJ's son.

"Is there news on any of the missing rangers?"

"None, other than Kai and Kendrix," Jason answered.

"We'll be sure to let Leo know," Tommy replied. "So we still don't know anything about the Grayson family?"

"Nothing. Kai or Kendrix was supposed to send word if Dana's father was with the other military forces in The Domed City, but they haven't contacted us further than saying they arrived safely. We were hoping maybe Captain Mitchell would know where the Carters are."

"Alright. Well, keep looking. Not that you were going to stop!" he added as Jason opened his mouth, a pained expression on his face. "I'm just saying!"

"Actually, I was going to say that it may be harder to find them than we thought. It turns out they have a really good reason to stay hidden and not risk travelling."

"They have their two kids with them?" Tommy guessed.

"That, and Dana's pregnant."

"Damn. That's a good reason."

"Yeah."

"How did you find that out if we don't even know where they are?" Ethan asked curiously.

"It was quite simple-" Alpha started to say, before Justin jumped up and covered his speakers.

"No!" Jason exclaimed. "You do _not_ want to hear how we know! Just know that Alpha figured it out and that's all you need to hear. _Trust me._ "

"You guys are such babies," Trini commented. "Justin, let the robot go."

"Thank you, Trini," Alpha said as Justin reluctantly withdrew.

"I'm confused," Ethan said.

"If you're lucky, you'll stay that way," Justin muttered. "Ignorance is bliss, man. Ignorance is fucking bliss."

"Alright then," Tommy said, shrugging at Billy. "Anything else we need to share?"

"Jase, I'm losing the connection," Trini said suddenly.

"And that's bad?" Tommy guessed.

"It means someone is trying to hack in. Or it's raining."

"It's not raining here," Udonna said.

"And _we're_ in the middle of a world-wide computer-issued drought," Justin added.

"Well, I guess this means goodbye until next time," Jason said. "Really quick, how's it coming making a tree safe for travel so we can get more of us out of here?"

"It's coming," Billy said hurriedly. "We may be delayed as we figure out how Nick got through undetected."

"We will contact you again with a location and time when we have it," Udonna said as the on screen image distortion became worse.

"We need to disconnect _now_ ," Trini said urgently.

"Bye, Mystic Realm," Jason said, raising his fist to Tommy.

"Take care of yourselves, Human Realm," Tommy said, and the two friends did an air fist bump.

The screen went black.

"Cute," Trini said in regards to the air fist bump to fill the silence.

"Thanks, I try," Justin smirked.

"Alright," Jason rolled his eyes. "Let's go eat. I missed dinner since we've been here waiting to connect to them."

"Speak for yourself," Justin complained as they all left the room together. "Trini and I have been here since after breakfast."

"Why did Adam and Rocky have ear plugs earlier?" Jason asked as they made their way down the hallway.

"Because you and Tommy usually start off these meetings by yelling at each other, and sometimes the volume is all the way up."

"We do not yell at each other."

Trini and Justin looked at each other before exclaiming in unison, "HELL-OOO MYSTIC REALM!"

"We are _not_ that obnoxious," Jason said defensively, pushing open the kitchen door.

"Yeah, you are," Rocky commented from where he was standing next to the nearest counter. "It doesn't help you have that deep manly voice that booms when you talk."

"Leave my deep manly voice out of this!"

"Boys, calm down. No arguments in my kitchen," said a young woman standing by the stove in an apron.

They sheepishly mumbled, "Sorry, Krista," and each grabbed a plate.

"I still don't see why it gets to be _your_ kitchen," Rocky grumbled.

"Because she's awesome at making vegan food and you're not. And right now all we have to eat is whatever we got off the trees in Mariner Bay Park," Trini said, grabbing an extra plate.

"How come _she_ gets two plates?" Rocky complained again, this time about Trini.

"Well, did _you_ remember to bring something to Vida?" Krista asked.

Rocky silently looked at her for a moment, then filled the rest of his own plate and grudgingly stomped out, muttering something about how girls are always sticking together.

"Connor," he said as he sat down at a table. "I do not like your fiancé."

"Yeah, isn't she great?" Connor smirked at him, having heard their conversation in the close quarters.

"Oh shut up lover boy," he responded as he picked up something off his plate that looked suspiciously like tree bark and studied it cautiously.

"If you're not going to eat that, I will," Chip said. "It's amazing. _Krista_ is amazing."

Connor coughed to cover his laugh, and Chip, feigning concern, patted him on the back.

Rocky scowled at them. "Hardy-har-har."

* * *

Meanwhile, Trini had filled the extra plate and was headed to visit Vida. Jason had decided his gnawing hunger could be ignored for a few more minutes while he accompanied his friend.

"Do you think we were right in not telling them the whole story about Vida?" Trini was asking him as they walked.

"Absolutely. It is what it is. It'll be upsetting when they finally do hear what happened, but for now there's no point in causing them to worry more than they already are."

"But wouldn't _you_ want to know if it was _your_ sister?"

"Well, if someone like you or Kim were to get hurt in the Mystic Realm I'd be concerned, but I wouldn't dwell on it because there's no threat to her there. But here, in the Human Realm? So much could go wrong at any given time and a major injury like Vida's could be interpreted as being worse than it really is. And anyway, she technically _is_ fine."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Trini agreed as they approached their makeshift hospital. "They're probably busy enough thinking about Dana and Carter and the girls. Plus…Zack…"

They both paused at the door.

"It would probably be best if we didn't talk about this in front of Vida," Jason suggested.

Trini nodded, and she pushed the door open.

"Hey Vida," Trini said as she stepped into the room. "You want some tree bark?"

Vida rolled over in her bed to face them. "That depends…who made it?"

"Krista."

"Then gimme some. Rocky's food makes me want to clean my mouth out with bleach."

Trini handed the plate to Jason and walked to the bed to prop some pillows behind Vida as she struggled to push herself up with only one arm.

"I can do it," Vida complained as Jason handed her the plate.

"Shut up and eat," he said, a smile forming on his face.

"I'm injured. You should be nicer to me."

"Alright you two," Trini interjected. "You-eat. You-update the patient," she pointed to each of them in turn.

"Well," Jason clapped his hands together cheerfully. "Your sister's boyfriend is back."

Vida choked. " _What?!"_ she managed to say between coughs.

"Yup," Jason said, rocking happily back on his heels. "About twenty minutes ago. And they've already snuck off on their own. I saw it with my own eyes."

"Stop it, Jason," Trini said, playfully shoving him before turning back to Vida. "He managed to use the trees to get through to Briarwood without being detected, then our guys got him to the Mystic Realm right away. And they weren't sneaking off," she added. "He looked lost, so I bet she was just clearing up a few things for him or something. Anyway, he's fine. Just thought you'd like an update on your team leader. Also, we kind of told Madison about you."

"What do you mean, 'kind of'?"

"Well…" Trini looked over Vida.

She didn't have the heart, or the guts, really, to tell the pink mystic ranger how bad she looked. Her face was less swollen, but the bruising was still clearly visible down her neck until her shirt covered it. Her right arm was in a sling and there were cuts and bruises up and down both of her arms. Three fingers on her left hand were heavily bandaged because they had been broken, and Vida was struggling to pick up her food with only her pinky and thumb. Trini couldn't bring herself to look at Vida's legs, where her right leg was considerably shorter than her left.

"We didn't want her to worry. You're alive, you're fine. That's all Madison needs to worry about for now."

"At least until you two see each other in person and you can tell her," Jason spoke up. "One Rocca sister is scary enough for me."

Vida scoffed. "Oh please. Maddie is as gentle as they get."

Jason nodded. "Which is why you're worried about her being in another dimension with a hard core biker boy," he said over-dramatically. "I get it now!"

Vida sneered at him. "Realm."

"Sorry, what?"

"It's a different _realm_ , not a different _dimension_."

" _Any_ way _,_ " Trini interjected yet again. "Jason's right."

"About _what_?"

"You can tell Madison yourself! She'll feel much better if it came from you!" Trini lost her temper and snapped at her. "Now, would you two be civil to each other for just one freaking day!"

They both fell silent.

"Thank you! Now, we didn't feel that it was our place to tell Maddie that her sister is-" she snapped her mouth shut. It was awkwardly silent until Vida spoke.

"You didn't want to tell her that her sister...is a pirate?"

Jason snorted, and even Trini had to crack a smile. "Yes," she said slowly. "That her sister is...a pirate."

"Trini, I know my leg got blown off. You don't have to sugar coat it for me," Vida said solemnly before perking up again. "Besides, I'm kind of excited."

"Why?" both of the veteran rangers asked incredulously.

Vida smiled broadly up at them. "This pretty much entitles me to free piggy back rides for the rest of my life."

* * *

Ten minutes later, Jason quietly shut the door behind him as he and Trini left the room.

"Well," he said after they stood silently for a moment. "At least she's in a good mood."

Trini looked at him like she thought this statement was crazy. "She's not in a good mood! Her leg just got blown off! She's just using dark humor to cover up the fact that she's in a _horrible_ mood!"

"Shh!" Jason hissed, ushering Trini away from the door. "Don't wake her up."

"She can sleep through anything," Trini waved a dismissive hand.

"It's weird how much random shit girls know about each other," Jason shook his head.

"Yeah, well, we're outnumbered here. We need to stick together."

When they got to the door leading back into the kitchen, Trini stopped.

"Hey, Jase?"

"What's up?"

"We haven't really had a chance to talk in the last few weeks…How are you?"

"I'm good," he said with a hint of a smile, as if this random formal conversation amused him. "How are you?"

"I mean it, Jason Lee! You've never talked about what happened to Kat, and now that we've lost Zack-" she broke off and took a moment to compose herself. "Are you sleeping yet?" she tried again.

Jason responded by engulfing her in a bear hug. "When I feel myself starting to lose it, you'll be the first person I come to."

"Good," she mumbled into his shoulder. "Now, let go of me-I can't breathe."

"Sorry," he said smugly as he let her go. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"When you finally drop this bitchy tough girl crap, will you come running to me for a shoulder to cry on?"

"Absolutely, Jase."

"Good," he said, throwing his arm around her shoulders as they walked back into the now empty kitchen. "And I won't even tell your boyfriend about it."

"Like last time?"

"Ha-that was funny!" Jason said as they entered the room where everyone was gathered.

"Billy didn't seem to think so."

"He'll get over it. ATTENTION EVERYONE!" he randomly bellowed to the room, causing them all to jump, including Trini, who took the liberty upon herself to whack him on the arm.

"Geez, I'm standing right next to you-warn me next time you're going to yell!"

"And you don't believe us when we say you're loud," Rocky complained, still in a bad mood about not being in charge of the kitchen.

"Don't blame me, blame my deep manly voice. So," Jason continued. "As you all probably know-if not, where the hell have you been?-we talked to the Mystic Realm earlier and we have a few updates-"

"Adam's daughter can walk!" Rocky interrupted.

"Nick is back," Chip spoke up.

"And somehow he got through the trees," Justin added from where he was sitting next to Chip. "Alive."

"And you told them about Vida's misadventure," RJ said.

"And how Kai and Kendrix made it to The Domed City," Mike chimed in.

"Hey!" Jason yelled, and the room fell silent. "What is the point of being in charge if I can't make all the announcements?"

"There's still a chance, Jason," Rocky said sympathetically, causing the others to snicker. "You can still announce that Dana is pregnant!"

Jason glared at him as the room erupted into cheers.

"Alright, well," Jason said as everyone calmed down. "We all know what this means-"

"Pink mimosas?" Krista asked innocently.

"No, not…pink _what_?"

"Last time for Dana's baby shower we had pink mimosas."

"They were delicious," Trini added.

"We should have them again."

"Oh, but what if it's a boy?"

"What if it's two boys?"

"They already had twin girls, what are the chances of-?"

"Do you mind?" Jason interrupted the girls.

"You're right. Continue on, oh fearless self-elected leader."

Rocky coughed and it sounded suspiciously like " _Dictator_!" This earned him another glare from the original red ranger as more snickers filled the room.

"Bat your eyelashes at him all you want," Adam commented idly to Jason, rocking his chair back on two legs so he could nonchalantly stare at the ceiling. "He's not going to shut up."

"Fine. Whatever. So anyway, as I was saying…what the hell is a mimosa?"

"Orange juice and champagne," Trini provided.

"But we used pink lemonade instead of orange juice," Krista added.

"Oh, of course," Jason said weakly. "Why did I have to ask…?"

"So, can we go?" David asked. "I need to add to my list of why my brother is a better leader than you."

"No respect," Jason said as the room laughed, but he himself was resisting a smile. "No respect at all. Alright people, let's keep on those searches for the rest of the rangers. Who's in charge of locating the Graysons?"

"Me!" Mike called through the commotion of everyone pushing back their chairs and standing up to leave.

"Cam, help him out. We need to find them before The Bad Guys, especially now that Dana…Well, we all know what they'll do to her."

"Not to mention what they'll do to Amelia and Carly," Trini added. "If The Bad Guys consider rangers by themselves to be a threat, who knows what they think the offspring of two rangers are like."

Jason nodded. "Alright people. Let's go get the rest of our friends home safe."


	4. The Inevitable

**CHAPTER 3**

One year ago, several former power rangers were gathered at Cape Canaveral, Florida for the awarding of their annual MORPH (Mathematics OR PHysics) college scholarship. However, the night before the awards ceremony disaster struck in the form of a space shuttle being prematurely launched, then crashing into the town.

Many were killed, many more were never found, but afterwards, one thing was made very clear: The group of people responsible for the attack...was the power rangers.

At first not many believed it, but gradually, it began to make sense. After all, how many cities had hosted power rangers over the years, and bore witness to the power they possessed, and the violence they exhibited? And how many times had the innocent people of these cities witnessed rangers fighting other rangers? The news channels didn't always know what was going on, but they could always tell when a ranger had turned evil. This time, it seemed that _every_ ranger had turned evil.

Or were they all evil to begin with?

Had the power rangers been pretending for almost two decades to be good, just to earn the people of Earth's trust so that when the rangers finally struck, no one would see it coming?

* * *

Rhonda Fitz, American politician, had never liked the idea of the power rangers. She had never trusted them. And before a week had gone by after the shuttle crash, she had many more agreeing with her.

There was no other explanation, after all. And added to it was the fact that no ranger had come to help The Cape after the crash. Not one.

And it got worse.

Soon after, a computer virus named Venjix infiltrated the country's technology, and gradually took over. Literally. It developed it's own army of robots who's purpose was to destroy humans...and still the power rangers did not come. But little did the people of Earth know, it wasn't the rangers fault.

When the accusations were made against the power rangers, they were publically exiled. Not only that, but a group of private militants were given the responsibility of tracking down any former or current power ranger and exterminating them.

A bounty was on the head of every living power ranger.

* * *

Rangers who survived the initial assault were forced into hiding. They traveled on foot towards Briarwood or Angel Grove.

The woods surrounding Briarwood, home city of the Mystic Force Power Rangers, contained many trees that served as portals to the Mystic Realm. The Bad Guys quickly discovered this and laid waste to as many trees as possible before the rangers could make their way to safety in the Mystic Realm.

Angel Grove, home city of the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, was serving as the safe house for exiled rangers to camp out until they could make their way to Briarwood.

The Bad Guys took control of the original Command Center, of course, but they didn't know about the Zeo Rangers hidden command center below the original. The rangers stuck in the human realm were hiding literally right under the Bad Guys noses.

* * *

In the past year, the rangers have managed to learn bits and pieces of information about what was occurring, but at a cost.

A scientific method was developed that made it possible for the rangers to be hunted down, and they were. Rangers always carry with them fragments of The Great Power, and the Bad Guys had learned how to follow these particles to find former rangers and annihilate them.

They did not die only from being targeted, but also from trying to learn more information. Teams of rangers were dispatched, led by Jason Lee Scott in the human realm, with the mission of discovering the true perpetrators and saving the human race.

They learned that there seemed to be a specific group of bad guys, whom they had dubbed simply "The Bad Guys", as no one actually knew who was really behind the apparent genocide.

They learned that the shuttle crash was not an accident. Rather, it was the first domino in the take down plot against the power rangers.

They learned that the attack on Cape Canaveral was a plan to take out a large group of rangers all at once while they gathered for an unofficial reunion, innocent casualties be damned.

They learned that they weren't as clever as they thought in naming their scholarship MORPH, as someone discovered that it was being led completely by former rangers and their associates.

They learned that even Rose's involvement in the shuttle launch project was no accident, and The Bad Guys were even using that against the rangers, saying that they had infiltrated NASA on purpose.

And perhaps the most troubling piece they learned was that this was an operation that had taken years of planning and execution.

It seems that for almost 20 years the extinction of the power rangers and the defeat of Earth has been in motion.

And the remaining rangers were left with the haunting thought that after two decades of victory against the forces of evil, the bad guys were bound to become more dominant and organized.

All of the events caused by the initial attack at The Cape were, in fact, inevitable.


End file.
